Super Street Network

Electronic Wizardry

Inside-Out, this Supra hits all the High Notes

"The Total Package" is one of the many mantras here at Turbo magazine. If you have The Package, you have a car that has engine power, braking power, craftsmanship and curb appeal--qualities that make one stand up and take notice. In most cases these cars have a focal point that outshines the other pieces of the puzzle. For Hubie Fuh of Holmdel, New Jersey, it comes down to cabin fever as the interior of his '94 Toyota Supra is where he and Sharp Precision Instruments (SPI) aimed the spotlight.

The JZA80 is a Mecca of electronic wizardry as the electronics in question address entertainment and tuning and, most of all, are displayed with style. From an entertainment angle, the centerpiece is a Panasonic color LCD monitor. The 7-inch screen (CQ-VA707WEUC) is joined to a Panasonic DVD player (CQ-DVR909U) to provide the ultimate in mobile cinema. Framed by carbon fiber and a gaggle of flat-out dope gauges, the audio/visual system looks right at home. SPI distributes the Defi-Link System, which is a monitoring strategy that incorporates a central control unit that transmits the proper information to each gauge via a single wire. Sending units under the hood send info to the CCU, which forwards it to the gauge. All Defi-Link gauges can be connected to a warning light and feature 40-second playback and peak/hold metering. The gauges sport aluminum bezels and high-intensity LED lamps for night vision. Hubie emptied the catalog on the Supra, running a big 115mm boost gauge and 60mm EGT, oil temp, oil pressure, water temp, and fuel pressure readouts. Defi-Link also has head's up display (HUD) units and the Supra has vehicle speed and boost offered HUD style.

Since electronics play such a vital role in the tuning portion of any build-up, Hubie was uniquely qualified to challenge the dyno and as we have showcased for the last couple of years the 2JZ-GTE is a primetime power player. Before unleashing transistor signals and binary codes on the engine, SPI fortified the hard parts. The 3.0-liter inline six was bored .020 over by RC Engine Building out of Brooklyn, New York, and fitted with JE pistons. The 8.5:1 compression slugs swing on Crower connecting rods and a stock crankshaft. It is a fact that power tends to hide in the cylinder head, but any competent Supra tuner will tell you the key is not so much hogging out the runners as it is matching cams to turbos (or turbo). The SPI Supra runs Blitz bumpsticks with 264 degrees duration and 9.3mm of lift. A pair of HKS cam gears are on call to fine tune the curve. All the moving components in the head are factory stock, a testament to the flow properties and overall design of the head.

Fuel and oxygen make power. SPI addressed these important issues with a Denso Mazda 20B fuel pump, SX regulator and 720cc injectors on the fuel side and HKS GT2835 ball-bearing turbos mounted to a trick HKS manifold on the induction side. The turbos run a 52T compressor wheel and a 10cm2 turbine wheel to provide a hard-hitting combination of spool up and high-end flow. With 35 psi of boost as a ceiling, a HKS Racing wastegate was employed to allow the turbos to spool properly by not opening pre-maturely under the crunch of nearly three dozen pounds of pressure. On the top end the wastegate ensures the speedy ball-bearing turbos will not overboost, which can result in a blown head gasket or worse. Anyone who has suffered the effects of slow-motion spooling or boost creep can appreciate the job a good wastegate does. Once the exhaust gas has done its duty, an APEXi GT-series exhaust system escorts the spent fumes out of the picture.

Electronic wizardry is again on display when it comes to the tuning of the 2JZ-GTE. Hubie says it's alphabet soup--VPC, ITC, AFC, AVC-R. An APEXi AVC-R Digital boost controller works in tandem with the aforementioned HKS Racing wastegate to limit the boost. The Supra retains its stock ECU but relies on hardcore off-the-shelf tuning instruments. First on the list is the Supra mainstay, HKS Vein Pressure Converter (VPC), which eliminates the restrictive factory air meter (see May 2001 Turbo). Next is an APEXi Super ITC ignition timing controller that allows tuning of the crank angle signal 15 percent plus or minus stock via five rpm knobs on the unit. The ITC works hand in hand with an APEXi Super AFC Digital fuel tuning computer that flexes eight rpm points of tune and a plus or minus 50 percent tuning window.

We have been eyeing this car for a long time but Hubie wanted to make power before letting us at it. The wait paid dividends as Hubie knocked our socks off. With a stock ECU and some piggyback computers the Supra was tuned to 624.5 hp at its street boost of 22 psi on 93-octane pump gas. With the bar raised to 24 psi, the Toyota belted out 649.1 hp. Boost was pushed to 28 psi and Hubie added five gallons of 110-octane to the tank, which he figured had seven gallons of 93 still in it. The result was a wicked 721.1 hp. Hubie calls this figure conservative, as he is seriously considering sticking to the 35 psi game plan. Wow! A Kaaz limited-slip differential and SPI clutch have the unenviable task of putting the power down to the ground through the Toyota's six-speed manual gearbox.

With an interior that would put the inventors of Grand Turismo into a jealous rage, and a 721-horse drive-wheel bite that would intimidate Jaws himself, you better have looks to rival Pamela Anderson if you want to live up to the Total Package credo. Thanks to FD Bodyworks of Brooklyn, New York, the Supra has more curves than Pamela. Hubie took the components he liked and basically made his own body kit. The Toyota's silhouette has been enhanced with a Bomex front bumper, Blitz rear bumper treatment and spoiler, Blitz side skirts, Veilside fenderwell treatment and a Veilside hood. FD made the conglomeration work by paying attention to the details and the final result is panels that look factory installed.

Harnessing the Supras thrust and managing the g-forces falls to HKS Hiper Damper coilovers and a meaty contact patch. The Supra rolls on Racing Hart C5s and Pirelli P-Zero rubber. Up front we find 19x8.5 C5s and 245/35ZR-19s. Out back19x10s are joined by 275/30ZR-19s. The Supra has great brakes in OE trim, so Hubie has only added TRD lines and pads to enhance their effectiveness.

In a world dominated by digital feeds and powered by the megahertz, electronic wizardry is becoming a necessity on the entertainment and performance front. Let's face it, 721 rear-wheel horsepower is a tune we can hum to all day long.